Spring shackle



Feb. 17, 1931. G, TRENCH 1,792,783

SPRING SHACKLE Original Filed Jan. 18, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 {l l l I :Jwve'nfo'c Harry ,G. Wench Feb. 17, 1931. H, G, T-RENCH 1,792,783

SPRING SHACKLE Original FiledJa-h. 1a, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 gvwewhn Harry G.Trench 2 M4 1 5L Patented Feb, 17, 1931 UNITED s ares rarsmj orrrce HARRY G. TRENCH, F HARTFORD, CONNECTICUTQASSIGNOR TO THE UNION TRUST COMPANY, OF'CLEVELAND, OHIO, 'A GORPQRATION OF OHIO 7 SPRING SHACKLE Original application filed January 18, 1926, Serial No. 81,947. Divided and this application filed May 26,

1927. Serial No. 194,233.

This invention relates to shackles for vehicle springs, and more particularly to aform of shackling unit that is an improvement over the constructions described in my Patent No. 1,042,173 that issued on October 20, 1912.

This application is a division of my copending application Serial No. 81,947 that was filed on January 18,1926 and is entitled Spring shackles.

Constructions of this character are employed for connecting vehicle springs with the vehicle chassis in such manner as to permit relative movement between the end of the spring and the vehicle frame. The shackling unit herein described is primarily adapted to permit movement of the end of the spring relative to the vehicle frame, both in a longitudinal and lateral direction, while yieldinglyrestraining such movement, and to dampen relative motion of the spring, in order to prevent rattling or slapping of the shackling mechanism during operation of the shackling unit. i

vehicle.

One of the objects of this invention ist'o provide an improved form of shackling unit embodying the characteristic advantages of my previously proposed shackling unit, which shall be more easily assembled and shallhave a single adjusting mechanism for regulating the degree of pressure applied by the shackle plates to the head of the vehicle'spring and to the portion of the frame that carries the An additional object of myifnvention'is to provide a shacklemechanisi'n that may be manufactured at less cost than the mechanism heretofore proposed and that is adapted to be lubricated from a single lubrication source.

An additional object of'the'invention is to provide a shackle unit that is adapted to be adequately lubricated from aicentral vehicle lubricating system. l V

Another object of the invention is to provide a shackle unit that isfintended to be used without bushings in the vehicle spring head ects will be apparent 'frameportion 1 with one end of a vehicle supporting spring 2, the'vehicle parts being broken away close to the shackle unit because they constitute no part of my present invention and serve only to illustrate the mounting of the shackle ,unit on any desired form of vehicle.

The shackle unit shown in Figs. 1 and'2 comprises, together with other elements, a pair of opposed shackle platesS and 4 that respectively havea pintle-receiving bearing cup 5 formed at each end thereof for receiv ing the end portions of pintles 6 and 7 that are respectively. carried by the frame projec tion 1 and the head of the vehicle supporting spring 2. i

Each of the shackle plates-3 ande has an aperture 10 formed therein for receiving a transverse assembly bolt 11. The castellated nut 12 for the bolt, 11 seats on a pressure spring 13 which is adapted to yieldingly maintain the shackle plates against the side faces of the spring head and the portion of the vehicle frame, i The supporting pintle 6 is preferably fitted very tightly into theframe extension 1 in order that it-will notturn within the frame supportand tLlSOJlIl order to avoid the use ofa bushing therein; It will be notedin this connection that neither the frame 1 nor the spring head 2-carries a bushing for the sup por-ting'pintle. Movement of the pintle preferably occurs in the bearing sockets 5 or the shackle plates which are readily replaceable if they. become worn.

A shackle unit of this form-may conven iently be lubricated through a lubricant chans nel 14E that communicates with any desired sourceof lubricant supply such as a lubricatingisystem for an entire vehicle; The pintle l projecting 6 has a lubricant channel 8 extending its entire length, and in communication with the supply channel 14. The shackle plates 3 and 4 preferably each have a channel 15 extending longitudinally thereof that carries the lubricant supplied by the channel 1 1 to each of the bearing sockets '5 of the shackle plate, although, in certain applications of the invention a single longitudinal channel 15 is suilicient for the lubrication of each bearing socket. A shackle of this character is shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings.

The removable character of the shackle plates 3 and 4 that are supported from the pintles (i and 7 is of particular importance. If the pintles become worn it is a very simple matter to replace such elements by pressing them out of the supporting frame or the spring head and pressing another pintle into position. The plain unthreaded and headless cylindrical pintles are much less expensive than shackle bolts and the saving in expensive bushin s for the sprin head and frame is considerable.

Fig. 3 shows a modified form of shackle unit in which one of the shackle plates 16 may, if desired, be formed of a leaf spring that imposes the desired degree of pressure against the spring head and the frame. This shackle unit also embodies a centrally supplied lubricating channel 17 that conveys lubricating material in one direction to a bearing socket l8'that is formed in the rigid shackle plate 19 and in the other direction to a bearing cup 20 that is preferably formed of pressed metal and that is adapted to take the wear resulting from the movement of the pintle 21 relative to the shackle unit. Lubricant is also conveyed from the bearing cup 18 through longitudinal channel 22 of the shackle plate 19 to hearing cup 23 at the remote end of shackle plate 19. From the hearingcup 23 the lubricant is conveyed through the channel 24 that is formed in pintle 25 to a bearing cup 26 that is carried by the pintle 25. An assembly bolt 27 extends through an aperture formed in the rigid shackle plate 19 and also through an aperture formed in the yielding shackle plate 16. The adjustment nut 28 that is carried by the end of the assembly bolt 2'? is locked in adjusted position by a cotter pin 29, or other suitable means. The nut is adapted to pull the leaf spring 16 from its initially curved form, as indicated by the dotted line 30, to the position shown in solid outline in the drawings. The degree of flexure obtained in the spring plate 16 is so arranged as to give the desired lateral pressure upon the spring head and the frame support. It is desired, however, that the spring 16 be substantially flat in its ultimate adjusted position.

The bearing cups 20 and 26 are preferably of pressed metal having a bearing pocket that is ust large enough to snugly fit over the end of the corresponding pintle to provide a bearing support therefor. Each of the bearing cups fit snugly within a suitably formed aperture in the corresponding end of the spring 16 which serves as a shackle plate for one side of the unit.

The operation of this shackle plate corresponds closely to the operation of the shackle plates previously described. In addition to avoiding costly bushings, this construction avoids the use of one of the supplemental springs for imposing pressure tending to hold the shackle plates against the spring head. It will also be noted that the pintle is entirely enclosed and that dust and other foreign material is excluded from the connections by the close fit of the bearing cups vith the frame and spring head.

The advantages of shackle units that are adapted for central lubrication systems and that are so formed as to avoid the use of bushings, headed and threaded shackle bolts and that are inexpensive to manufacture will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Each of the proposed forms of shackle units is intended to be used both as suspension and as compression shackle units.

Furthermore, it is to be understood that the particular for ns of apparatus shown and described, and the particular procedure set forth, are presented for purposes of explanation and illustration and that various modifications of said apparatus and procedure can be made without departingfrom my invention as defined in the appended claim.

hat I claim is:

The combination with vehicle spring and frame members, of a shackle unit comprising pintles mounted in and extending transversely through the spring and frame members, one of said pintles having a lubricant channel extending from one end to the other thereof and the member in which it is mounted having a lubricant supplying channel communicating with the lubricant channel of the pin tle. a pair of shackle plateseach having a pintle receiving cup at each end and having transversely alined apertures intermediate the cups, each plate having a lubricant channel extending longitudinally through the same past the apertures thereof from one cup to the other, and an assembly bolt passing through said apertures of the shackle plates for clamping the shackle plates against said spring and frame members with the projecting ends of the pintles in said cups.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

HARRY G. TRENCH. 

